Epi Silverburst Tbird-question.

Chris P. · August 14, 2015, 05:25:03 AM

A friend of mine owns a silverburst Epi Tbird. He wants to change the black pickup rings to chrome ones. I don't know why, cos we all know black is better on Tbirds.

Are the dimensions of those pickups just like normal guitar humbuckers?

uwe · August 14, 2015, 08:03:13 AM

By deduction I'd say yes, because those pups in the Ltd Ed Silverburst Epi TBs of yore are (six magnet) Epi guitar pups! Which is why they sound so awful - all middish without any treble or balls - and your friend, with all due respect, would be better advised to replace them with Gibson TB Plus guitar size pups (which fit in size as well) rather than waste time with irrelevant, even harmful cosmetics!!!

These young people ...

I sent my original pups to someone here in the forum (to get rid of them!), may he step forth now!!!

Chris P. · August 14, 2015, 11:14:33 AM

Thanks!

godofthunder · August 15, 2015, 07:22:38 AM

Dimarzio Model Gs would turn that bass into a flame thrower

Nocturnal · August 15, 2015, 08:58:52 AM

Quote from: uwe on August 14, 2015, 08:03:13 AM
By deduction I'd say yes, because those pups in the Ltd Ed Silverburst Epi TBs of yore are (six magnet) Epi guitar pups! Which is why they sound so awful - all middish without any treble or balls - and your friend, with all due respect, would be better advised to replace them with Gibson TB Plus guitar size pups (which fit in size as well) rather than waste time with irrelevant, even harmful cosmetics!!!

These young people ...

I sent my original pups to someone here in the forum (to get rid of them!), may he step forth now!!!

I seem to remember you sent those to SkateRat and he installed them in a guitar, which is where they belonged.

slinkp · August 15, 2015, 11:29:43 AM

Lots of other things could fit in that bass... Rio Grande Put Bull, or don't some people use DiMarzio X2N for bass?

chromium · August 15, 2015, 11:33:22 AM

Here's a shot I took of the Epi Silverburst pickup's backside. Guitar humbucker - literally:

My old Epi Elitist (right) had guitar sized TB+ with similar black rings originally... replaced here with some flat chrome rings:

chromium · August 15, 2015, 11:40:28 AM

Quote from: slinkp on August 15, 2015, 11:29:43 AM
Lots of other things could fit in that bass... Rio Grande Put Bull, or don't some people use DiMarzio X2N for bass?

I'm on a bit of a humbucker kick lately.

My favorites so far (on 4-string bass) have been Dimarzio D-Activator DP-221 "F spaced" guitar neck pickups. Kind of like X2Ns, but not quite as heavy on the mids. Those are in the chambered bass below.

The Bill Lawerence EB-50s in the black bass are also pretty cool. A little like the Pitbulls (had one of those in an Ampeg bass) but muuuch cheaper.

I have a bass incoming that will be getting either the X2N or Model G treatment soon...

uwe · August 15, 2015, 11:53:39 AM

That school of Hamers looks nice!

I can't even believe that those Epi pups could sound good in a guitar - they are that awful!

slinkp · August 15, 2015, 01:08:39 PM

I have a hard time thinking a pickup with "no treble and no balls" would sound good in ANYthing.

I once had a Seymour Duncan P90 in a hybrid guitar/bass monstrosity I hacked together out of an old Univox clone of a short-scale Moserite. It sounded pretty good on the bass strings. The neck pickup was the original pickup, which also sounded good on both guitar and bass strings, though too quiet on the B string which was nowhere near a pole piece.

"Pickups is pickups", I figure.

Dave W · August 15, 2015, 02:35:46 PM

The right 6-pole guitar pickup can sound just fine in a bass. This just isn't he right one. And from what I hear, it doesn't sound good in a guitar either.

Quote from: slinkp on August 15, 2015, 11:29:43 AM
Lots of other things could fit in that bass... Rio Grande Put Bull, or don't some people use DiMarzio X2N for bass?

If you mean the X2N-B, which is still available by special order, that thing is all overdriven midrange. Some people have used the regular X2-N in basses, I don't recall having heard one.

chromium · August 15, 2015, 06:33:02 PM

Quote from: Dave W on August 15, 2015, 02:35:46 PM
If you mean the X2N-B, which is still available by special order, that thing is all overdriven midrange. Some people have used the regular X2-N in basses, I don't recall having heard one.

The coursed string basses above both run X2Ns (guitar version - 15K impedance). Combined with the preamps, the output on those basses is HOT... pickups respond somewhat like a TB+, but maybe slightly more pronounced mids. They handle the octave strings really well, and crunch up nicely with some overdrive.

The only X2NB I've tried is in Nokturnal's RD. If I recall he has it in the neck position... and there's a BL in the bridge. That X2NB will punch holes in sheetrock! Measures in mudbucker territory 30K+. It's a monster, but it seems to work very well in that bass.

veebass · August 15, 2015, 11:05:09 PM

That explains a lot- a friend of mine has one of these and I could never stand the sound of it.

Nocturnal · August 16, 2015, 11:01:12 AM

Quote from: chromium on August 15, 2015, 06:33:02 PM
The coursed string basses above both run X2Ns (guitar version - 15K impedance). Combined with the preamps, the output on those basses is HOT... pickups respond somewhat like a TB+, but maybe slightly more pronounced mids. They handle the octave strings really well, and crunch up nicely with some overdrive.

The only X2NB I've tried is in Nokturnal's RD. If I recall he has it in the neck position... and there's a BL in the bridge. That X2NB will punch holes in sheetrock! Measures in mudbucker territory 30K+. It's a monster, but it seems to work very well in that bass.

Chromium is correct; I have the X2NB in the neck position on my RD. It is very powerful and VERY bassy!!. I have it wired so that you can split the coils and usually run the neck pickup split and the Bill Lawrence bridge pickup (also with split coil) on full. Lots of cool sounds available from this bass but if I had known how much bass the X2NB provides I would have gone with the X2N instead. The Bill Lawrence EB50 is a great pickup and can be found on eBay for +/- $50. Install those with the split coil option and you will have a pretty versatile bass.